Army of the Southern Cross - Military Vehicles

Ground-Based Vehicles

Ground-based vehicles are used primarily for personal, troop, and cargo transport in the Army of the Southern Cross. There are a few armored combat vehicles but the majority of the frontline heavy military action is the realm of the Veritech Hovertank and the various ASC Battloids, with more traditional armored vehicles relegated to support roles.

While the heavy armored vehicles are still wheeled (or tracked), most of the personal and cargo ground transports in the ASC are hover vehicles capable of travel over a variety of terrain. Hover technology is fast becoming commonplace in the UEG, with more affluent citizens in the larger population citizens owning personal hover cars. A few older wheeled jeeps and trucks are still in use at most ASC bases as well.

ASC Hover Cycle

Vehicle Data

  • Vehicle Type: Personal ground transport
  • Crew: 1 pilot + 1 passenger
  • Weight: 170 kg
  • Height: 1.2m
  • Breadth: 0.8m
  • Depth: 2.6m
  • Cruising speed: 112 kph
  • Max speed: 340 kph
  • Range: 1600 km at cruising speed; 1290 km at max speed

Armament

  • none

Additional Equipment

  • Mini-radar: 6.5 km range, limited accuracy
  • Radio/video communications: 150 km range
  • High intensity headlight

The ASC Hover Cycle is a mobile, high-speed combat and transport vehicle used by the various Southern Cross Armies. The vehicle is frequently used for patrol and reconnaissance duties, and the GMP and CDU make use of it for policing in urban areas and on military bases. The ASC Hover Cycle hovers at 1m to 3m off the ground, and can execute a limited boost jump up to 9m.

GMP Land Rover

Vehicle Data

  • Vehicle Type: Personal ground transport
  • Crew: 1 pilot + up to 4 passengers
  • Weight: 2.5 tons
  • Height: 1.2m
  • Breadth: 2.1m
  • Depth: 4.9m
  • Cruising speed: 80 kph
  • Max speed: 290 kph
  • Range: 800 km

Armament

  • none

Additional Equipment

  • Mini-radar: 6.5 km range, limited accuracy
  • Radio communications: 100 km range
  • High intensity headlights
  • Loudspeaker

The Land Rover is a lightly armored transport and reconnaissance verhicle. Its sturdy design makes it useful in both urban and wildreness environments. The GMP make the most frequent use of this vehicle, especially as part of security patrols at sensitive installations. The Land Rover hovers at 2m off the ground, and can execute a limited boost jump up to 3m. There is also a slightly larger and more heavily armored version of the Land Rover that has additional space for troop transport and is used as a combat vehicle.

ATV Missile Launcher

Vehicle Data

  • Vehicle Type: Military combat
  • Crew: 3 crew + up to 3 passengers
  • Weight: 24 tons dry; 96 tons fully loaded
  • Height: 7.7m
  • Breadth: 3m
  • Depth: 6.8m
  • Cruising speed: 22 kph
  • Max speed: 50 kph
  • Range: 480 km

Armament

  • 1 x Missile launcher, carrying 8 long-range missiles

The ATV Missile Launcher is intended as a mobile, fast-deploy anti-aircraft platform. Its heacy-duty oversized wheels are designed to handle rough terrain, allowing this vehicle to be deployed in a variety of battlefields to establish a formidable defense zone. Reloading of the missile launcher typically takes 6 to 8 minutes.

APT Tank Carrier

Vehicle Data

  • Vehicle Type: Military combat
  • Crew: 3 crew + up to 2 passengers; 24 troops in the personnel bay
  • Weight: 47 tons
  • Height: 3m
  • Breadth: 4.9m
  • Depth: 10.5m
  • Cruising speed: 80 kph
  • Max speed: 120 kph
  • Range: 965 km

Armament

  • Self-loading rapid-fire anti-tank cannon
  • 180mm grenade launcher

The Armored Personnel Transport (APT) Tank Carrier is a common assault vehicle in the ASC. It fulfills both a troop transport and infantry support role in the field. Both the main crew compartment and the personnel bay are airtight, allowing this heavily armored vehicle to operate underwater for a short time.

Aircraft

Corsair III

Vehicle Data

  • Vehicle Type: Transatmospheric aerospace fighter
  • Crew: 1 pilot
  • Weight: 40 tons
  • Height: 7.5m
  • Breadth: 20.1m
  • Depth: 16.4m
  • Max speed: 6500 kph
  • Range: 17,000 km

Armament

  • Rapid-fire ion cannon
  • 3 x missile bays with 9 long range missiles each

The Corsair III (also known as the Chimera) is the primary (non-transformable) fighter of the TASC and Cosmic Unit. It can be launched from the ground or from space-based platforms and is capable of transatmospheric flight with its high-power booster engines.

Specter Interceptor

Vehicle Data

  • Vehicle Type: Air/jet fighter
  • Crew: 1 pilot
  • Weight: 6.2 tons
  • Height: 4.9m
  • Breadth: 12.2m
  • Depth: 12.8m
  • Max speed: 3250 kph
  • Ceiling: 15,250 m
  • Range: 2900 km

Armament

  • 2 x rapid-fire pulse laser
  • 2 x missile hardpoints, 2 medium or long-range missiles each

The Specter Interceptor is the fastest atmospheric fighter in the ASC and is the primary attack fighter of the Tactical Air Force. Its small size combined with its high maneuverability make it an ideal air and ground attack fighter. There is also a slightly smaller, unarmed recon version of the Specter equipped with a sophisticated surveillance suite.

Phantom Fighter

Vehicle Data

  • Vehicle Type: Air/jet fighter
  • Crew: 1 pilot
  • Weight: 10 tons
  • Height: 5.3m
  • Breadth: 11m
  • Depth: 18.9m
  • Max speed: 2700 kph
  • Ceiling: 18,300 m
  • Range: 1600 km

Armament

  • 1 x autocannon
  • 2 x missile bays, 20 short- or 10 medium-range missiles each

An all-weather interceptor, the Phantom is the second most common aircraft in the Army of the Southern Cross.

Spacecraft

There are two general categories of spacecraft in use by the Army of the Southern Cross. The first are the space shuttles, small to medium size transport and combat vessels that form the bulk of the space fleet that operates around the Earth-Moon system (and more distant Mars). The second class of spacecraft are the larger capital ships, space equivalents of the great naval vessels. Additionally there are two types of space fighters in use, the transatmospheric Corsair III described above and two models of mecha, the Veritech Logan Fighter the newer Veritech AGAC Fighter/Helicopter, both of which are space-worthy.

Space Shuttles

Space shuttles are generally used for transporting mecha, personnel or cargo within the Earth-Moon system. The more heavily armed ones occasionally perform patrol duty as well.

Pegasus Class Assault Shuttle

Vehicle Data

  • Vehicle Type: Ground launched combat space shuttle
  • Crew: 7; pilot, co-pilot, navigator, 4 x gunner + 32 troops and 8 mecha
  • Weight: 150 tons
  • Length: 62.1m
  • Width: 18.3m
  • Height: 18.3m
  • Max speed: 3250 kph (requires booster rocket to reach orbit)
  • Range: 96,500 km
  • Cargo capacity: 200 tons

Armament

  • 1 x rapid-fire beam cannon turret
  • 1 x forward-facing beam weapon in the nose

The smallest of the combat space shuttle craft, the Assault Shuttle, or Pegasus, is used primarily for transport, reconnaissance and space combat support.

CTC Combat Troop Carrier

Vehicle Data

  • Vehicle Type: Ground launched combat space shuttle
  • Crew: 17; pilot, 2 x co-pilot, 2 x navigator, 2 x flight engineer, 2 x communications specialists, 8 x gunner + 72 troops and 24 mecha
  • Weight: 390 tons
  • Length: 122.8m
  • Width: 36.5m
  • Height: 36.5m
  • Max speed: 3450 kph
  • Range: 96,500 km
  • Cargo capacity: 410 tons

Armament

  • 4 x rapid-fire beam cannon turret
  • 2 x forward-facing beam weapon in the nose
  • 4 x missile launger turret mounted on top, bottom, and both sides. Each turret holds 6 long-range missiles plus 8 reloads for a total payload of 54 missiles per turret.

Designed as a frontline combat unit the CTC Combat Troop Carrier (aka the Albatross) can easily carry an entire squadron of mecha in addition to up to 72 troops.

Defender Space Shuttle

Vehicle Data

  • Vehicle Type: Ground launched combat space shuttle
  • Crew: 47; pilot, 3 x co-pilot, 2 x navigator, 6 x flight engineer, 3 x communications specialists, 16 x gunner, 16 x additional support crew + 144 troops and 48 mecha
  • Weight: 150 tons
  • Length: 286.5m
  • Width: 74.7m
  • Height: 60m
  • Max speed: 4100 kph
  • Range: 112,650 km
  • Cargo capacity: 1000 tons

Armament

  • 8 x rapid-fire beam cannon turret
  • 2 x forward-facing beam weapon in the nose
  • 8 x missile launger turret mounted on top, bottom, and both sides. Each turret holds 6 long-range missiles plus 8 reloads for a total payload of 54 missiles per turret.
  • 12 x Veritech VFH-10 AGAC mecha

The largest and most powerful of the combat space shuttle craft is the D.S.S. Defender Space Shuttle, or Gossamer. Heavily armored and heavily armed, and with a large mecha complement, the D.S.S. is the core of the Southern Cross Space Fleet.

Capital Ships

Capital ships make up the Southern Cross Space Fleet. The fleet itself is not very large, as many of the Earth's capital ships left with the Robotech Expeditionary Force, but there are still a handful of Frigates, Destroyers, Crusiers and even two Carriers in service in the Space Fleet.

Tokugawa Class Carrier

Vehicle Data

  • Vehicle Type: Space naval vessel
  • Crew: 2600 crewmen, 3900 pilots, air group and troops
  • Mass: 10,800,000 tons (operational)
  • Length: 1120m
  • Width: 430m
  • Height: 357m
  • Range: Full solar system transit capability, unlimited fold range

Armament

  • 2 x twin-barreled beam cannon on both sides of the command tower
  • 1 x quadruple-barreled beam cannon forward of the command tower
  • 12 x single barrel medium beam cannon turret
  • 15 x heavy nuclear missile launch tubes with 150 rockets
  • 6 x 15-silo defensive missile launcher
  • 12 x single barrel point defense cannon
  • ~1000 veritechs and non-transformable aerospace fighters
  • Numerous auxiliary craft and shuttles

The Tokugawa class carriers were the first fold-capable ships built entirely using Earth-technology with no salvaged parts from alien craft. Though their large size led them to often be referred to as battlefortresses the Tokugawa class vessels only possess defensive weaponry. The Tokugawa's primary function is as a fighter and Veritech carrier, not frontline combat vessel. The bulk of the Tokugawas built left with the REF fleet in 2022, but two remained at Earth and are part of the Southern Cross Space Defense Fleet.

Tristar Class Cruiser

Vehicle Data

  • Vehicle Type: Space naval vessel
  • Crew: 400, with an additional air group of 700
  • Mass: 459,000 tons (dry, typical)
  • Length: 461m
  • Width: 107m
  • Height: 101m
  • Range: Full solar system transit capability, unlimited fold range

Armament

  • 2 x 2-barreled rail gun turret, one fore and one aft of the command tower
  • 1 x 2-barreled particle beam cannon, forward of the fore rail gun turret
  • 2 x 4-barreled particle beam cannon, one mounted to the port of the centerline between the forward two main turrets, and the other starbord of the centerline between the forward railgun and command tower. Turrets are retractable
  • 6 x 2-barreled point defense turret
  • 10 x 1-barreled point defense turret
  • 4 x Anti-warship strategic reflex missile launchers on the dorsal forward main hull and side sponsons. Total of 10 missiles.
  • 4 x 10-tube vertical missile launchers on the side sponsons, for a total of 120 missiles
  • 8 x 2-barreled light anti-aircraft turrets
  • Approx. 220 fighter craft, usually a mix of Veritechs and Corsair III non-transformable fighters
  • Several shuttles and other launchers

The Tristar-class large cruisers are the flagships of the Southern Cross Space Defense Fleet. These, along with the Tokugawa class carriers, are the only fold-capable vessels in the Southern Cross fleet. The heavily armed Tristar cruisers were designed to hold their own against the larger Zentraedi space vessels and are also capable of planetary landings. There are several dozen Tristar class cruisers serving in the space fleet.

Warp Zone | Robotech RPG | Southern Cross | Mecha and Equipment | ASC Vehicles